Well, reader, it’s been epic. As I sit here, grieving the end of this outstanding series and wishing it wasn’t so (please recall that movie scene from Thor where Thor drinks coffee for the first time in his life and promptly smashes the cup on the floor demanding ANOTHER), I am also incredibly thankful for what this series has done and will do in terms of diversity in the romance genre.
After two brilliant novels about the Brown sisters, Chloe and Danika, we finally get Eve Brown’s story and it is as incredible as its predecessors.
Eve Brown is a hot mess, and everyone knows it. Struggling to hold down a job for long, her passions for wedding planning, studying at university, and singing have been fleeting – much to her parents’ dismay. Disappointed in their daughter, they give her an ultimatum: keep a job for a year or forego her trust fund.
Enraged and embarrassed, Eve flees her home and finds herself spontaneously interviewing for a chef position at an adorable Bed and Breakfast whose owner may be hot, but clearly is also an idiot.
Jacob lives and breathes control. Living with autism, he knows what he needs and what he doesn’t. And Eve Brown, who disrupts his life with her beauty and wits is certainly not the right woman to fit the chef role. Everything about Eve, from her unwavering confidence to her ability to call him out on his bullshit, is a thorn in his side and that’s before Eve Brown accidentally hits him with her car. From that unexpected collision on, this book is a wild ride of two seeming opposites learning that they might not be that different after all – and realising that home can be anywhere as long as you’re with the right people.
The premise of this book was fantastic, but once again, what really drew me in was Hibbert’s ability to balance the romance with the characters growth. It’s a fine line to give the individuals in a romance just as much “me time” as to further their relationship and this book handled that balance perfectly. Yes, the chemistry between the two of them is absolutely sizzling. They butt heads a lot of the time, but in the end, they both support the other and only want the best for them. Jacob and Eve may snap and sneer at each other, but it’s impossible not to clutch the book and whine ‘just kiss already’ as the tension between the two of them grows palpable.
Beyond that, this book focused on a topic that was way too relatable for me. Eve is considered flighty because she can’t stick with any one job, but what others perceive as lacklustre effort has actually so much more depth to it. Eve wants to be great at something but the mere thought that she might fail at it is enough to zap her of any enthusiasm to pursue a career (kind of along the lines of ‘you can’t fail if you never try’). That fear, I think, is instilled in all of us – that to fail is worse than not trying at all. The growth Eve goes through in this book really hit home for me and I think anyone who’s ever called themselves a lazy perfectionist might like Eve.
Jacob may also be my favourite new man crush. He was just so relatable in the way he keeps himself closed off to others because he knows that once he lets someone in, people have the tendency to leave him. Quite like Eve’s fear of failure, Jacob anticipates rejection and preempts it, which makes for a hauntingly emotional evolution of his character in the book and I admit that I teared up more than once when he talked about his abandonment issues. Seriously, Jacob deserves the world and I’m not taking criticism at this point. But when he meets Eve, who is caring and kind and not going anywhere, Jacob decides to give love a second chance and falls head over heels. I can’t really blame him as I loved Eve from the minute I met her when she promptly hit Jacob only to then ask him whether his injuries would hurt less if she flashed him her boobs was only the cherry on top of my undying devotion to her. These two were literally picture perfect for each other.
Now, I cannot speak for the autism representation in this book and thus defer to #ownvoices reviews, but from what I can tell, the subject was handled with a lot of care. There’s no oversimplification of autism and there are no cure-for-all plotlines. Instead, autism and its signs are weaved seamlessly into the narrative and it’s never referred to in pejorative terms, which was so refreshing. Autism isn’t used as a barrier to keep them apart; instead, it is embraced and talked about with kindness which made me really happy.
Also, how Hibbert manages to make me laugh out loud and to also have quiet tears streaming down my cheeks within the same chapter remains a mystery. This truly is a book I would recommend to everyone.
Whether you pick this up because you enjoy the enemies-to-lovers trope (who doesn’t?), want to read about fierce, vulnerable women who go after what they want (both in romance and in life in general), want to laugh (I mean, I’m not saying there is a scene in this book when Jacob happens to accidentally sit on Eve’s purple, glittery dildo but that’s exactly what I’m saying), want to cry (is there something in my eye or did Jacob really just pick daisies at the side of the frickin’ road so he could give Eve flowers?), there’s truly something for everyone within these pages. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll sympathise and sync your Spotify playlist to Eve’s taste. This book is the full package.
A worthy, unforgettable conclusion to one of the best romantic comedy series out there, Act Your Age, Eve Brown packs an emotional punch and simultaneously soothes the soul – and proves that this truly is Talia Hibbert’s world and we’re all grateful that we get to live in it.
Act Your Age, Eve Brown is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of March 9th 2021.
Will you be picking up Act Your Age, Even Brown? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
In Act Your Age, Eve Brown the flightiest Brown sister crashes into the life of an uptight B&B owner and has him falling hard—literally.
Eve Brown is a certified hot mess. No matter how hard she strives to do right, her life always goes horribly wrong—so she’s given up trying. But when her personal brand of chaos ruins an expensive wedding (someone had to liberate those poor doves), her parents draw the line. It’s time for Eve to grow up and prove herself—even though she’s not entirely sure how…
Jacob Wayne is in control. Always. The bed and breakfast owner’s on a mission to dominate the hospitality industry—and he expects nothing less than perfection. So when a purple-haired tornado of a woman turns up out of the blue to interview for his open chef position, he tells her the brutal truth: not a chance in hell. Then she hits him with her car—supposedly by accident. Yeah, right.
Now his arm is broken, his B&B is understaffed, and the dangerously unpredictable Eve is fluttering around, trying to help. Before long, she’s infiltrated his work, his kitchen—and his spare bedroom. Jacob hates everything about it. Or rather, he should. Sunny, chaotic Eve is his natural-born nemesis, but the longer these two enemies spend in close quarters, the more their animosity turns into something else. Like Eve, the heat between them is impossible to ignore—and it’s melting Jacob’s frosty exterior.
